Seeing Is Believing
by Azure Ocean22
Summary: It was just a normal night. I couldn't sleep, which is a common occurrence. What I didn't expect was to meet a strange boy who seemed vaguely familiar. Soon my eyes were opened and I've found myself in more danger than I could ever imagine. Cue Jack Frost, my new highly-inexperienced bodyguard. Things can only go downhill from here... (Re-uploaded)


**Disclaimer****: I don't own Rise of The Guardians or The Invisible Network of Kids. This is probably going to be the only Disclaimer in the story since I can't be bothered to state something that is so blindingly obvious. Enjoy! **

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><p>The bedsheets were a mess, tightly woven around the young girl's legs. Pieces branched out, lying haphazardly across the mattress, rustling every time she moved. Ice blue eyes shot open as the girl, gasping for breath, bolted upright as if electricity had just jolted through her body. The girl gently pried the tangled, hardly an excuse for a bed sheet, away. She dumped it in a pile which she then kicked to the edge of the bed.<p>

Cold beads of salty sweat dripped down from her forehead, running down her face and back, sending shivers up her spine. The girl used the back of her hand to wipe her forehead before peeling and lingering hair off her face and brushing it back with a small flick of her fingers.

Suddenly remembering something, the girl's hands flew to her abdomen. When no pain coursed through her body, the girl cautiously removed on hand to peer at the skin in utter confusion. No sticky liquid coated them, nor her clothes. The girl tilted her head in confusion.

_But I was...? _

Then, in obvious panic, the girl squinted as she peered into the shadows. Her eyes trailed around the room, taking in her wardrobe, punch-bag, bed, desk- where all her books, homework, stationary, and other junk was scattered- and her door, which was exactly how she left it, firmly closed.

The girl shuffled over to the edge of the bed where she then hung her head over the side of the bed, allowing her white-blonde hair to dangle while she checked below her. Finally satisfied, she flopped back onto her bed and closed her eyes, only to open them again a few moments later. She gave a small groan as she rolled over, pulling her knees to her chest and threading her fingers through her hair in irritation. "Freaking dream, go bother somebody else." she muttered quietly, attempting to block out the bombardment of images and sounds wandering through her mind.

Icy blue eyes travelled across the ceiling, tracing patterns and watching the swirling shadows until a frustrated sigh escaped her lips as she began to accept the fact that she wasn't going to be having a pleasant nights sleep.

Wishing to delay the night terrors, the girl silently shuffled to the edge of the bed allowing her feet to dangle as she slipped off the mattress without so much as a thump when her feet hit the wood. She stepped silently over to the window with the qualities that some might associate with a ninja, others would call them the traits belonging to Zero.

She gazed out of the window, taking in the sight around her. The trees, the playground, the classrooms, the lonely tire swing that hung from a towering Oak tree, even the wrought-iron gate that stood around the edge of the school. Her eyes widened in surprise as the gate purposely swung open. "What the...?" She watched the trees in the background, but they had not moved, then prioritised herself to search for whoever may have opened it, but, at two in the morning human presence was scarce as there were not many brave enough to venture the streets at night.

Frowning, Zero gave the view outside her window a once-over glance, before finally deciding to go and investigate, assuring herself that she wouldn't be missing much, it wasn't as though she'd be getting any more sleep tonight.

She pulled on a pair of socks, which she may or may not have used today or in fact any previous day, before hunting around her floor for what seemed like an eternity, eventually discovering her boots hidden underneath her bed, right in the corner where she had kicked them earlier that night.

She slipped them on and grabbed her jacket from the back of a chair, and on a second thought reached over and snatched her phone off her desk before pulling one arm through her jacket whilst silently opening the door and sneaking out as effortlessly as one would find walking. Her footsteps made no sound as she walked the deserted hallways of her school. Some might find this experience terrifying, or just slightly creepy, Zero found it calming and was the best way for her to clear her head. After having stayed at Pinkerton for five years, walking the corridors almost every night, she had become acquainted with every creaky floorboard, every door most likely to squeak when opened and the best places to hide from intruding eyes. She knew where most people were most likely to be at certain times of the night and knew most of the short cuts inside the school.

This being taken into account, she reached the stairs before which stood the large doors leading outside in under three minutes even though her room was quite possibly the furthest from them. "Aw, man." Zero complained, muttering the words under her breath as to not attract attention from any hidden eyes, as she silently padded down the stairs, taking them two at a time. "Alarm's on." This, of course, was not much of a problem for Zero, it was just the fact that she would have preferred to take the shorter route.

Zero slipped unnoticed out of the window, propping it open with a conveniently placed stick. As soon as she hit the ground, a wave of cold hit her, making her stumble back in surprise. "Oh, God, it's freezing out here!" Shaking her head and promptly stuffing her hands into her pockets, the girl advanced forward, figuring the gate would be a good place to start.

She pulled at the gate, but it was locked, like it had never even opened. "Maybe I was seeing things?" She questioned herself, running the scene through her head a second time. She then heard a crackling behind her and her eyes were drawn to the ground where a thin trail of frost was forming. Intrigued, Zero acted upon impulse and began to follow the mysterious frost as it twisted into the forest surrounding the school. Frost danced up the trees around her and the temperature seemed to drop to Sub-Zero as her breath came out in wispy plumes of steam.

She jumped as she heard a crunching sound beside her. About two meters from where her feet were currently placed, an imprint of a human foot could be seen. Her breath hitched in her throat when she realised something. _Someone was here. _

She was tempted to call out, but decided against it. Instead, she continued to trudge through the forest, staying more vigilant now she was aware of another presence in the forest. Again she heard footsteps and spun around, dropping into a fighting stance only to be met with thin air. Across the ground were footsteps. Only this time they weren't human.

Giving an almost fearful glance around, Zero took off, sprinting through the forest and as far away from the mysterious footsteps as she could. All around her the frost became heavier until it became snow, tipping over the the front of her boots every time she placed her foot down. She gave a glance over her shoulder, which couldn't have been at a worse timing, as her feet slipped over some ice and she barrelled into the ground, her body carrying momentum as she crashed down the slope, coating herself in snow, which, in all honesty shouldn't even be there; it was the middle May!

Brushing the snow off her clothes and out of her hair, Zero began to remember.

Memories rushed into her mind, most bad, other's better and some she missed even if they occurred after fear. But they were strong enough for her to have on thought spreading through her mind like wildfire. She didn't believe, as she was no longer five, sitting on the bed curled up next to her brother as he told her stories but could still remember and had stumbled onto the only plausible explanation that her brain had jumped to.

"Jack Frost?" She whispered, crossing her arms across her body and shivering slightly. After a minute of waiting, she felt stupid for standing there, in the cold, shivering and actually believing, even for a single second, that a make-believe character was real. "God, this is stupid." She muttered, angrily kicking the ground sending snow spraying everywhere as her fists curled into tight balls held firmly at her side

"I agree. After all, why stay here when you can be inside, staring at your ceiling and counting down the hours until morning?" Zero froze, hardly daring to breathe. There, in no way, could anyone be near her. Yet the voice sounded so close.

Shaking her head, Zero scolded herself. "You're imagining things. The stupid nightmare's messed up you brain. There's nobody here." Zero cringed at the though. She didn't have a nightmare. Nightmares were manifested from fear and she, Zero, didn't get scared.

"I'm offended." The boy's voice rang out again, causing Zero to swing around. Sure enough, sitting on a low, forked branch was the boy. A mop of shockingly white hair covered his head, tousled and sticking up in random places. Playful, ice blue eyes stared straight at her, holding a teasing twinkle, matched with pale skin and cheeky smirk. He wore a faded, blue hoodie and worn, brown pants, the lack of shoes were obvious, immediately striking Zero's curiosity as she wondered how on Earth he wasn't freezing.

"Um, sorry?" The boy's smirk increased in size, as he watched Zero mentally battle with herself. "Who are you?" Zero said finally, crossing her arms across her chest as she frowned at the boy.

He gracefully jumped off the branch, performing a small flip before touching down, grinning at Zero and giving her a big, over-exaggerated bow. Straightening back up, the boy grinned, displaying a set of perfect white teeth. "My name is Jack Frost," Zero's seemed to pale considerably but she managed to wipe off all expression from her face. "It's very nice to meet you."

Zero continued to stare, not quite believing this sudden turn of event's. "Usually people reply with their name." Jack teased, leaning against a tall, hooked wooden staff that Zero had previously failed to notice.

"Zero," She replied, snapping out of her trance and narrowing her eyes at him, taking up her usual icy demeanour her face flickering into a mild scowl. "My name's Zero." He disinterestedly flew up into the air, delicate snowflakes spiralling down ever so gracefully as they twirled around his hand before gliding down. Zero's mouth practically dropped and hit the ground, her scowl disappeared and eyes widened as she watched. "No-freaking-way." She breathed.

"Hmm?" Jack turned back to face her, and, taking in her expression, his eyes sparkled mischievously as he lowered back down. "Oh, crud. Wasn't supposed to do that." He said, much more to himself than anyone as he shot Zero a lopsided grin, which, made her think that he wasn't quite bothered in the slightest that he had just flew_ 10-freaking-feet in the air!_ "Anyway, to speed things up a little. Bunny, if you will."

"Wha...?" Zero was quickly informed of what was happening as she felt something grab the neck of her top. Her eyes widened and she kicked out, glancing behind her to be met with a hairy paw. Yes, paw. Not hand. Paw. A sack came out of no-where and her body was effortlessly lifted from the ground. "Hey, lemme go!" She exclaimed as the sack engulfed her body, trapping her inside the fabric.

"Let me out! You're so dead! For God's sake, LET ME OUT!" A sense of weightlessness fell upon her as she felt the sack being thrown forward, and heard Jack's voice fading out behind her as a whooshing noise took over. "Aw, crap." She groaned to herself. "What the hell have you got yourself into this time, Zero?"

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><p><strong>AN: Okay, yeah, I know I should really be updating my other stories. But I just couldn't. I mean, have you every had the urge to write something, so bad that you can't focus on anything else until you have? I've been attempting an update of Little Problems for ages, but things kept getting in the way and this chapter just kept nagging me. I am trying my best to update, but yeah. **

**Thanks for reading this, hope you enjoyed it. I apologise for any mistakes that may have been in there spelling or character wise, I just figured out how to change my spell check in my internet browser from American English to just plain English, which I'm now happy about. Gosh, I lead a boring life. Character wise I don't really know any excuse I can give. **

**Anyway, thank you for taking the time to read this, don't be afraid to leave a review, it does make my day when I see them and I'm going to go now since you probably can't be arsed to read this boring Authors Note. **

**~ Azure**


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